Date in the Name of the Law
by apples-a-day
Summary: Regina's sure that someone must be laughing at her. Not only was she having to do a cheesy undercover job, but she also had to do it with the rookie? Cop AU ergo: no magic.
1. The Assignment

**And the final SQ Week drabble that will be turning into a full fic!**

**This chapter is nothing new BUT! I have shifted a tiny detail as I will be incorporating something new into the story. **

**Please enjoy this chapter if you haven't read it before, and the new chapter will probably be up in a few days!**

* * *

Regina gripped the back of the chair in front of her tighter, willing her anger to recede.

She had come in to her boss' office, not even bothering to sit down on the chair in front of his desk. James was still smirking at her, as if this was one big game to him.

"I refuse."

James' fingers were intertwined in front of him, and he looked positively evil sitting in his chair, something Regina was sure that he did on purpose in order to look more intimidating. "Ah, but you can't refuse. This wasn't a request you can turn down, it's an order. Goes beyond my paygrade."

"But with the rookie?" Regina practically spat the last word out.

He smirked wider, unlacing his fingers. "Everyone needs to start somewhere."

Regina practically growled "at the expense of my patience?"

* * *

"Swan!"

"Bear claws!" Emma jumped up from her desk where she totally hadn't been snoozing. Nah she had just been meditating... yes of course.

Her boss, the good-natured Graham, shook his head, a smile on his face. "Not a snack call Swan. Got a new assignment for you."

She looked over to her partner in crime and friend, Ruby, grinning, and then both turned to look at Graham expectantly.

His smile faltered here. "Sorry ladies, _Detective_ Emma's got another partner for this one."

"For real?" Emma's excitement barreled through the fact that she should've been sad that she wasn't working with Ruby. She didn't even register the fact that she had to be working with someone else on this one.

Her friend quickly caught on to that, and with a playful shove, said "already forgetting about us little people in your quest for fame and glory?"

The blonde rolled her eyes, "Of course not! You know I'll always think of you guys as my team."

Emma Swan had been in the police force for 5 years, and had already accumulated quite a bit of a reputation with her effective methods at solving crimes. Rumors started flying around that the higher ups had been considering on promoting her. Seems like for once the rumors were true.

"So who is Emma's new lucky partner on this one?" Ruby was feigning jealousy, her lips pursed and arms crossed, but Emma could see that Ruby's eyes were sparkling with laughter.

Graham's initial reluctance to answer had both women on edge.

"Well?" Emma wasn't so ecstatic now. Who did she get saddled with? She hoped it wasn't Her Royal Majesty, Bitch Frost herself.

"Mills"

Well shit.

* * *

_It was Emma Swan's first day on the force, and she was running late. She hoped her boss wouldn't be one of those stereotypical hardasses who were anal about being on time._

_She rounded a corner, the coffee she was carrying dangerously close to spilling, and she smiled as she saw the Boston PD building come into view. She glanced up as the building loomed closer, and didn't even see as she crashed smack into someone._

_Her coffee, previously in her cup, was now staining a perfect suit of the woman she had ran into. Said woman wearing the suit was glaring daggers at her._

_Emma didn't have time for profuse apologies, so she just smiled sheepishly, grabbed some napkins that she had took from the coffee shop, and stuffed them into the hand of still mute woman, yelling back her apologies as she ran into the building, leaving the soaked, and probably scalding, woman standing there like an idiot with her briefcase and some napkins._

_The blonde had actually managed to snag a pretty laid-back chief, Graham as he insisted he call her, and her new partner Ruby. They explained the inner workings of the department, including some of the less savory characters, most of them pertaining to the detectives floor._

_Sydney Glass was a detective and avid photographer, and also the source of gossip for the entire PD. He was a friend of Ruby's, the two gossiping like old ladies constantly. But he could also be one hell of an extortionist, making sure to know what words would get what he wanted._

_"Never give him material to use as leverage against you." Ruby had warned her._

_But the very worst one of all was Regina Mills. Ruby said that although James Nolan officially ran the detective department, it was well known that Regina was the puppet-master the entire operation._

_"God help you if you ever on Regina's bad side. Last person to do that was never heard from again."_

_Emma was sure Ruby was exaggerating, but she hoped she would never have to meet, or have to deal with her. She really didn't sound pleasant._

_She ended up eating her words before the end of the day. Ruby had come back from lunch with Sydney and was already telling August, a fellow officer, about how some poor soul had spilled scalding hot coffee onto Regina Mills this morning, and had the balls to leave her just standing there outside with some napkins, not even offering to help._

_The blonde had paled, but kept her head down. People spilled coffee on other people all the time. What were the chances that that was _just_ her luck to spill coffee on the most frigid member of the force?_

_Apparently it was really high._

_As she was leaving the building, she got on the elevator without looking up from her papers, and as she glanced up, she saw she was sharing an elevator with none other than Regina Mills._

_Well, Emma didn't know that at the time, but she recognized the face from this morning, and saw that the clothes were now different and coffee-free. The blonde decided that maybe she should take the first step, maybe apologizing now would make the other woman forgive her._

_She extended her hand towards the brunette, a charming smile on her face. "Hi, I'm really sorry for spilling coffee on you this morning, it's my first day and I was kinda in a rush, otherwise I would've totally helped you. I'm Emma Swan."_

_The brunette barely batted an eyelash after she finished her speech, her mouth set in a thin line. Clearly she was hard to please. As the elevator arrived to the first floor, she walked up to Emma, personal space be damned, and said, "Detective Regina Mills." She pushed past Emma roughly, walking out of the elevator as the doors opened. "You'd do well to watch where you're going, _Rookie_."_

_Emma could only stand there, now she was the one looking like an idiot, hand still raised to shake, mouth gaping. Just great._

* * *

Ever since then, the two have had their fair share of spats. They could barely stand to be in the same room together, making the Christmas parties super awkward. They never even acknowledged each other as anything but their derogatory nicknames. Regina called her Rookie, and Emma called her a variety of names, her favorite being Bitch Frost.

As Emma stood in James' office, the other woman could've probably melted the strongest metal with the glare she had on her face. Clearly she was just as enthusiastic about the arrangement as Emma was. But she could hardly complain, she couldn't exactly start already angering her superiors on the first day in her new position.

"Well, now that you two are all done with introductions," he was mocking them, they had been silent since Emma came in, Regina having already given Emma a dose of her signature lemon-sucking expression the minute she had come bounding through the door. "Your assignment. A very powerful drug dealer will be hosting the party of the year. We need you both to go in for recon. We know that this man is well connected, and would only invite the seediest underworld characters to ever exist, all who are currently in the game. So what I want are names."

Regina spoke up, venom lacing her voice, "Then why do I need a partner? Or is the Rookie supposed to be part of those trashy druggies, she certainly looks the part."

Emma glared at the other woman, who didn't even deign to turn and face her glare. So they didn't share the same tastes in clothes, was that such a crime? She liked leather jackets and the Ice Queen liked pantsuits. Big deal.

James' smirk grew wider. "You need to get out more. No, it's Valentine's day tomorrow, and this guy, ever the romantic, is hosting a party and a partner is required."

Emma did a double take. Before she could stop herself, she blurted, "Hang on, we're going there as _a couple_?"

"Yep."

Regina looked positively murderous. "Then why the hell do I need her? I can take Sydney-"

"He's busy with another case, and anyway, I got my orders. You two are going and that's final. So if I were you, I'd get to know each other, 'cause if you plan on surviving Gold's party, you don't just need to act the part. You need to live it." James winked at them. What an idiot. Ruby had said he had a twin brother, who was much kinder, also in the force. Just her luck that the evil brother was her new boss.

* * *

Emma's hand was poised on the door of the apartment, ready to knock again, when the door finally opened. To say she was gaping was an understatement. Clearly the older woman could probably look stunning wearing a paper bag, since the towel she had wrapped around herself, despite being just a rectangular piece of cloth, managed to show off her curves perfectly. Emma hid a smile and a blush as she saw that the woman had clearly just gotten out of the shower, her hair stuffed inside a towel wrapped around her head, some strands that had escaped were dripping water onto her bare shoulders.

"You're here early, Rookie." Regina was clearly not pleased at being interrupted with her beauty bath. Emma noticed that Regina gave her a quick once-over, staring at the midnight blue dress she was wearing, but the brunette didn't make any comment regarding her opinion of the dress.

"My apologies, your Majesty," she feigned a curtsy, before continuing, "but I figured that, since you bolted yesterday before I could even say a word and we're supposed to be playing a couple, I figured that we should at least get to know each other somewhat, and not look like we're at the edge of jumping at each other's throats," Emma deadpanned. Seriously? She hoped this wasn't going to be her permanent partner if she had to be dealing with this kind of attitude every time.

"Very well. But don't touch anything." Regina opened the door wider to let the blonde in.

"Well, you're letting me breathe at least, I consider that a win. So, colour?"

Regina barely had time to react with a snarky retort to the jab the blonde made before the question threw her off. "What?"

Emma sighed, acting like she was a teacher dealing with a rather difficult child. "What's your favorite colour?"

Regina grimaced. "When did this turn into a sharing session?"

"Did you just not hear anything I said? We're supposed to be dating! What kind of an idiot would I be if I didn't know the answers to some basic questions about my girlfriend?"

Regina discreetly flinched at the term the blonde used. It was true that they were supposed to be dating, but Regina never stopped to think of themselves as girlfriends in this scenario.

When the brunette didn't reply, Emma continued, "Seriously? Didn't you find out those basic pieces of information from your past lovers?"

"No, I didn't."

Emma snorted. "Must be one hell of a love life you got there, your Majesty."

Regina narrowed her eyes at the moniker the other woman had adopted to call her, and felt her fury rising. It was just for one night. She just had to be civil for one night and that was it. "Purple."

Emma smiled at the confession. "That wasn't so bad was it? And red, thanks for asking."

The older woman was positive that if certain laws didn't prevent her from getting away with it, she'd strangle the blonde right then and there. Instead she rolled her eyes. "While you think up of more excellent and stimulating questions, I need to dress."

The brunette left Emma standing in the living room, the latter made herself at home the minute the other woman was out of sight, propping herself on the probably expensive leather couch, feet resting on the table that was probably in the same price range as the sofa.

Not even five minutes later was Regina back, now wearing a Boston PD shirt and shorts. Hell hath no fury like a woman who has her furniture touched, Emma thought wryly as she saw the scowl she was greeted with.

"Have you no class?" This immature woman was really testing her patience.

"Have you got any furniture that doesn't look like it should be in a museum? I mean seriously, do you even sleep in your own bed?"

"You are worse than a child."

"Better a child than a frigid bitch. When's your birthday?"

"Wh-" This was the second time the blonde had managed to short-circuit her thoughts with a disarming question. This was going to be one hell of an evening.

* * *

Clearly drug dealers could clean up well. This was practically a gala, and if they didn't know any better, this would've looked at first to be like any high-society ball.

They handed their invitations at the door, and once Regina finished putting her coat away, she was surprised to see Emma with her arm out, in an offer to take it. The brunette accepted it, and they walked into the party arm in arm.

Together, they made their way over to the cocktail bar, standing with drinks in hand and glancing around the room. They were all business and were actually helping each other to find recognizable criminals around the room.

"Sooooo." One man made their way to them, clearly drunk off of his ass. Emma tried to hide any sign of recognition. Well shit, this could go south real fast. He got real close to Emma, and with a breath smelling of vodka, said, "I'm Neal, and you are?"

"Taken." Regina had jumped in, putting a protective arm around her waist. Emma's breath hitched. Man, she never knew Regina could get so territorial and possessive with her partner. _Fake_ partner, Emma reminded herself. She was just playing the part.

Neal had taken the hint, pretty astute for a drunk guy, and stumbled away from them.

Emma willed herself to calm down. She smirked as the hand stayed on her waist. They might be fake dating, but they still teased each other mercilessly. "Thanks for the save, babe."

Regina stiffened, removing her hand like she was touching a burning surface. She cleared her throat, and changed the subject. "I don't believe I know him."

"Cassidy. Guy is a criminal, a good one, he uses his charms to get other people to do the work for him and take the fall if something goes wrong." Emma tried to shrug the matter off with what she had read up on the guy. A couple of years ago she was set on his case but the trail went cold quickly. At least that was the official story.

Emma could sense the jealousy seep into the reply, "If you're so enamored and impressed, maybe you should've flirted with him."

The blonde smirked. She whirled to face the brunette by her side, and said, "Like you said, I'm taken. Plus, what kind of girlfriend would I be if I just left you all by your lonesome with these bad guys?"

Regina didn't have a ready response for this, and she looked away at some cheering coming from the door. As she saw who had arrived, she paled. "Shit."

Emma hadn't been expecting that as her answer, but followed her partner's gaze to the door, seeing the very handsome man coming inside. "Old flame?"

"Not exactly," Regina grumbled. "More like an old assignment."

This wasn't good news. "Let me guess. You arrested him and he hates your guts, and he has your face memorized so he could pick you out of a crowd, therefore ruining this entire operation?"

Regina could only nod meekly.

Emma glanced back. The man, who Emma recognized as the modern day skewed Robin Hood, pilfering from the rich to keep for himself or fund illegal projects, was making his way over to the bar, straight to where she and Regina were standing.

Thankfully he was talking animatedly with his companion and hadn't noticed them yet, leading Emma to make a split-second decision. She turned back to her panicked partner, grabbed her face, and pulled her into a kiss.

Regina barely had time to react, but to the surprise of both women, she melted into the kiss, rather than jump away horrified. Emma wanted to close her eyes and enjoy this, but kept a watch as the bandit passed right beside them - so close Emma could've stuck her leg out and tripped the guy - and didn't recognize Regina.

As Regina let out a moan, it seemed the sound brought the brunette back to reality and now she jumped back, cheeks flushed and eyes wide.

Well this was going to be an even more awkward evening than either had imagined.

* * *

**Alright! Next up will be the end of the party plus the aftermath the next day.**

**This is pretty much a cop AU type of deal, just in case it wasn't clear.**

**Anyway! Let me know what you think, and like I said, the next chapter will be up soon!**


	2. Partners

**And as promised, chapter 2!**

**Sorry about the mini delay, I was just caught up reading a bunch of fics, my browser is saddled with some 15 odd fics open and waiting to be read. So much to read, so little time!**

**But anyway we continue at the party with our dynamic duo deep undercover!**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Regina cleared her throat, turning to look at where Robin was currently entertaining a group of young women. He hadn't seen her, and the brunette let out a sigh of relief.

"Sorry about it."

The older woman turned to look at her partner, brow furrowing. "For what?"

"The uh, the kiss..." the blonde was now blushing, embarrassed at having to explain. "It was the first thing that came to my mind."

"Oh." It had been some good quick-thinking by the blonde, especially since she had been frozen on the spot, something which never happened to her. "It's fine, it did the job in our situation."

"Yeah..." Emma nodded, looking around. Then she froze, seeing something behind Regina, and quickly thought on her feet again. "We're going dancing."

"Wha-" Regina could barely react before the blonde grabbed her hand and dragged her to the dance floor, which currently held a mass of bodies grinding onto each other to some contemporary tune.

Somehow they managed to get deep into the group of dancers, and through the blaring music, Emma managed to say to Regina, "Your ex was walking towards us so we had to move."

"He is _not_ my ex!" Regina was livid, glaring at Emma.

Said blonde was looking around her, trying to keep at bay the men that could blow this entire operation sky high. "Whatever you say, babe"

Regina rolled her eyes, willing her self-restraint to prevent her from choking the blonde, and tried to at least move to the rhythm, people were starting to look at the two still women.

Next thing Emma knew, she felt someone grinding into her pelvis. She was about to tear someone a new one, as well as to spit out a few choice words about keeping it in their pants, until she saw who it was. Regina freaking Mills, frigid detective by day, and humourless brick wall by night, was grinding her ass into her. The brunette grabbed Emma's hands, that were still limp at her sides, and put the hands on her hips.

Holy shit. Emma was touching Regina's hips, swaying sensually. She was going to need a _very_ cold bath after this. Regina suddenly leaned back a bit, her back resting against Emma's chest, and whispered, "People were starting to look. We were stiffer than mannequins."

"Right." Was Emma's squeaky reply. Man she must look like a horny teenager who never got any action with her responses. Plus she practically had to be guided on what to do by Regina, since her body had decided to forget how to function right at that moment.

The brunette just chuckled. Clearly she must be having a riot seeing Emma flounder so pathetically.

* * *

After what felt like centuries dancing, Emma and Regina finally made their way out of the dance floor. They were both lacking air from the constricting space, and needing a good drink.

They settled once again in the bar, drinks in hand, looking around the scene.

"Well hello dears." Both women turned to see the infamous Gold strutting up to meet them, his shaggy hair and smirk making all of Emma's creeper alarms ring. "I don't believe I've had the chance to meet you two ladies."

Emma flashed a radiant smile, hoping to lay off suspicions. To be honest, she was internally panicking. "Oh are you the host of this party? My girlfriend and I were just saying how rad this party as, right babe?"

Regina made a mental note to herself to remind the blonde that the next time she called her 'babe' she would sorely regret it. But now appearances were appearances. "Oh yes, mind-blowing."

Thankfully Gold seemed pretty content with their responses, even puffing out a bit at the compliment. "Well thank you, but now I must go and attend to some private matters. If you'll excuse me."

As Gold left, both women let out a sigh of relief. Emma was the first to speak up. "Care to call it a night?"

Regina nodded. "I think we've done enough recon for the night."

The undercover detectives made their way to the door, relishing in the crisp winter air once they were outside. They were now bundled in their respective jackets, making their way to Emma's car. Thankfully, after years in the force, Emma was finally able to afford a good car, meaning that she could avoid the public transit, which always had a knack of making her late, however cliched that sounded. She tried to avoid it as much as she could, but with her old yellow bug that loved to break down one too many times, it was an inevitable consequence. And now the luxurious sports car was a more reliable upgrade, meaning she could avoid the transit.

"Well, that wasn't so bad," Emma broke the silence as she revved the engine, smiling a bit at her companion.

But it seems that Regina's niceness storage had run out. Either that or she had been ready to explode with anger for the past 3 hours, but had kept up the impressive facade. "Not so bad? You nearly exposed us at least 3 times, not to mention you forgot to establish our undercover roles, where _I_ was supposed to take charge of the conversation with Gold and set myself up as a potential new partner. It was a disaster, but what can I expect from the Rookie?"

"Seriously? I'm sorry _your Majesty_, how exactly did I expose you 3 times? Was it my kissing you? Did you prefer to be discovered? Because if memory serves me right, you were the one that froze up the minute you saw Robin Hood waltz in. If it hadn't been for me we wouldn't even have been able to talk to Gold." Emma didn't even want to tackle the rest of what the brunette said. She shouldn't have to deal with this shit. They got the recon and they weren't outed as cops, what more could she want? It's not as if they were being graded on effectiveness.

The rest of the trip was saddled with awkward silence, both women were seething in anger for the other. By the time they arrived at Regina's apartment, the tension inside the car needed an industrial powered saw to cut through it.

"Good night, your Majesty." Without even looking at the passenger seat, Emma coolly let the brunette know it was her stop and to get out of the car.

Regina, for her part, didn't even bother to respond, wordlessly getting out of the car. She still created a ruckus, managing to make the seatbelt snap away, clanging around the interior - Emma just gripped the steering wheel tighter, repeating a mantra of 'just a few more seconds' in order to steel herself from blowing up at the insufferable woman - finally slamming the door closed with such a force Emma was sure her windows should've cracked.

As she peeled away from the curb, she turned her radio high up and let out a whoop. She was free. No more bitchy partner. Just hand in her report and be done with Regina Mills.

Oh how wrong she was.

* * *

"I'm impressed." James Nolan was rifling through both of their reports, said authors of the reports were sitting on the visitor chairs, doing everything possible to avoid looking at each other but still managing to glance around the room as they waited for their boss to finish.

At his voice, both women turned to face him. "I'll be passing this to the higher ups, they'll be glad to see all the names and get right on a tail to bring them in."

Both the brunette and the blonde flashed practised smiles, ones that didn't reach to their eyes, but to any unsuspecting viewer, looked genuine.

"You're dismissed." With that they were done and out of the office without another word.

Emma made her way to her desk, wanting to finish setting everything up.

"I think congratulations are in order, since you survived your first mission with Mills."

Emma turned around to see Sydney Glass standing at the entrance of her cubicle, a friendly smile on his face. "Thanks. I'm just glad to be done with her you know? There's only so much bitchiness I can take in one day."

Sydney chuckled in response. Due to his friendship with Ruby, Emma had gotten acquainted with the gossiper a number of years ago. Of course Emma was still careful with what she revealed to the man, Ruby's warning from her first days was still fresh in her mind.

"Completely understandable. Any idea who your long term partner is going to be?"

Emma shook her head. "None. As long as it's not her Royal Frosty Ass or Harold, I think I'm good."

"Oh trust me, Harold's a better pick than Jones."

Emma hadn't heard of this Jones before, though granted, she had yet to meet most of the detective department. She should probably get around doing that this afternoon. "How so?"

"Guy is an ass, the womanizing macho type."

The blonde cringed. "Fair point. He can move up the list, but still not above her Majesty."

Sydney grinned. "You really hate her don't you?"

"Not my fault she's a frigid bitch. She takes the lone wolf detective thing a little too far. Has she ever been kind to anyone?"

The man shook his head. "Not of my knowledge. Unless undercover. Then she becomes a whole other person."

"I can attest to that. You should've seen her after the party, she just blew up!"

The two continued to have a few laughs and got to know each other better. She could see why it was so simple for him to get the scoop on people, he was easy to talk to, and then eventually they'd say the wrong thing and he'd pocket the information for another time.

* * *

"Mills!"

Regina looked up to see James standing at the doorway of her office. After so many years on the force, she had been upgraded from a cubicle to her own office. It allowed her to avoid interacting with people, something she was thankful for on most days. "Yes?"

She had long forgone the need to be respectful to her superiors. Her mother had always told her that respect showed submission, and if she ever wanted to reach the top anywhere, she had to be assertive and show everyone that she wasn't someone to be trifled with. Due to that, James didn't even bat an eye at the harsh answer, and instead plowed on. "I'm making Swan your new permanent partner."

The brunette was sure she heard wrong. "Are you out of your mind? I'm not working with that incompetent dunce!"

"You two worked well together last night, and the higher ups think it's a wonderful idea."

"I refuse!"

James smirked. Although he had knew that Regina would never treat him with respect, he didn't accept it. To make up for that, he salivated the moments that he could anger her. Bonus points if he got to see her blow up like that. It was his personal revenge for having to deal with the condescending detective. "Not my call Mills. The boss said so. If you want to try and deal with Spencer personally, you know where his office is."

Regina grimaced. Albert Spencer, Captain of the Boston PD, was a hell of a man. He was worse than James, and that was saying something. It looked like she was going to be stuck with Swan.

* * *

Emma was in a frenzy. Just her luck to have to deal with an emergency like this. She made sure her papers were in order and everything was locked. Grabbing her jacket, the blonde was rushing out of the cubicle. Unfortunately, Emma's mind was on the fastest route she should take to get to the hospital, and she didn't see the path ahead of her.

In what felt like a repeat of five years ago, Emma Swan went crashing headfirst into Regina, and although thankfully Emma didn't have a cup of coffee, Regina did have a stack of papers. Well, it used to be a stack of papers. Now they were like overgrown rectangular confetti, floating around. The blonde's eyes widened. She didn't have time for this.

Picking herself up from the floor, she didn't even look back as she continued her sprint towards the elevators. "Sorry!" was the only thing Regina heard as a recognition that she had even crashed into her.

Oh Regina was pissed alright. She was going to make Emma Swan pay. No way was she letting the immature blonde get away with crashing into her twice without so much as a helpful consideration.

* * *

**And that was this chapter!**

**Next up we'll see why Emma was running out to go to the hospital, plus more antics with these ladies.**

**In terms of my other fics, I'll be starting the Enchanted AU, so get ready for that! And then a new chapter of Such a Heavenly View.**

**Also, I'll be starting a one-shot collection, taking requests etc. so be on the lookout for that!**

**Thanks as always for the support!**


	3. Yet Again

**And here we go! More for these two budding detectives...well okay they're not budding at all right now, but semantics y'know.**

**So we last left off Emma rushing to the hospital for some reason, leaving Regina in a similar position from 5 years ago, except instead of coffee, it's papers. But she's still pissed. Ooooh boy is she pissed. **

**I hope everyone enjoys this!**

* * *

Emma practically burst into the hospital, and wildly searched for someone who could direct her to where she wanted to go. 5 minutes later, and she saw the familiar woman who had called her there. "Mary Margaret!"

The woman turned and quickly went to meet Emma, and started trying to explain, but her frantic words were making her seem like she was rambling, "Emma, I'm not even sure what happened. One minute he was fine and the next he was pirouetting on the stairs..."

She squeezed the other woman's shoulders gently to calm her down, and then went inside the room. He looked so small in the mass of sheets and the cast that was too big for his arm. "So kid, when did you join the circus?"

"Mama!" Henry perked up seeing his mom come in, and the blonde quickly made her way to sit at the edge of the child's bed. "I made a boo-boo."

"I know you did, that's why you're in the hospital." Mary Margaret had had a full blown panic attack when she called her and hour or so ago, which didn't help to soothe Emma's nerves as she finally managed to understand what the woman was trying to say between wracking sobs and broken explanations. But then again, Mary Margaret had always been a worry-wart. It was the one thing she hated about her sister, because every little thing that happened turned into something akin to a national disaster. How the woman dealt being a daycare supervisor was beyond her.

Henry, her 4-year old son, was flustered as Emma quickly reprimanded him, before going off to find the doctor to get a diagnostic report.

"Well he's an active one alright. Thankfully it's only his left arm that took the brunt of it, his knees and shins just have some minor bruising, but he'll be fine. I just have to go check on something first, and then I'll come back so we can sign the papers and you'll be good to take him home. I'd give him a few weeks of recovery until it all heals, and he should come back in a week to change his bandages. He needs plenty or rest, and because I know every child tries it, please make sure he knows he can't use his cast as a baseball bat, or to try to test its durability, it can break and it won't do anything good to his recovery."

Emma nodded in understanding, and watched the lady leave, presumably to check on other patients.

"So, is Henry going to be fine?" She turned and saw Mary Margaret walking up to her with two cups of coffee.

Grabbing one cup her sister offered, Emma sighed, "Yeah, just needs rest and relaxation. In a couple of weeks he should be right as rain."

Taking a sip, Mary Margaret stewed over the information. This day had been hectic for her, between Henry and the daycare, she just needed to go home and have a relaxing bath.

Soon enough, the doctor came back and Henry was discharged. A few minutes into the ride and the kid was already conked out in the backseat of Emma's car.

"Before I forget, tomorrow is Staff Day at the daycare."

Emma hummed. Every month Mary Margaret's daycare had a Staff Day, wherein she and the handful of other workers had a meeting after the daycare closed to discuss Inventory Supplies and a whole bunch of other stuff that Mary Margaret had once explained, but Emma hadn't paid the least bit of attention to. "Don't worry about it, I'll pick Henry up."

Due to Emma's busy job, she had enlisted the help of her sister in helping to take care of her son. It wasn't an ideal situation, Emma hated being so much time away from him, but working in law enforcement was never easy. Mary Margaret welcomed the opportunity to hang out with her nephew, so she was more than glad to help Emma to take care for the young boy.

"Well, this is my stop. Sorry about Henry, again."

The blonde waved her off. "Don't worry about it, if not tonight, Henry would've tried another time. Don't beat yourself up over it Mar."

"True, kids give a new definition to 'don't knock it till you try it.'"

Emma chuckled, trying not to be too loud or wake Henry. They quickly hugged and said their farewells, going home to get ready for another day.

* * *

"So, in the doghouse with your partner...how are you going to solve it?"

Emma had been dozing off - in her defense, it was way too early for any normal human being to be awake and functioning properly - and turned to face her cubicle entrance where Sydney was currently standing with a smirk on his face.

"What did I do?" Emma asked.

Well it came out more like a slur, making Sydney chuckle. "You mean you don't remember running into Mills and sending her crashing...once again? You must have a death wish for doing it twice. And for not helping her either time, you're probably double dead."

Yesterday's fiasco had completely flown right over her head after she had ran out to the hospital because of Henry. She cringed inwardly at remembering the terrible crash yesterday where she practically bolted out of the office, panicking after hearing her sister's frantic sobs. Knowing Bitch Frost's tendency to not take bullshit for an answer, and Emma was going to be hard-pressed to earn sympathy points after yesterday. Just what she needed.

"Yeah well, I'm about to go for the triple combo and try to apologize." Emma stood up, feigning bravado that she certainly did not possess, and certainly not at 7 in the morning. "If you don't hear from me, grab anyone and break down Her Majesty's office. We're in a building full of cops, and I'd doubt she'd try anything, but then again, this is Regina Mills we're talking about."

Sydney just chuckled once more as he stood aside to let Emma pass. "Your funeral."

"Don't I know it."

* * *

Regina should have made a bet with herself on how soon she was to expect the sorry excuse for a detective that is Emma Swan to appear at her door, coming up with yet another hare-brained excuse as to why she had crashed into her, again.

When she heard knocks on the door, Regina plastered her patented smirk in place. It was well-known that this smirk made even the toughest criminals cry, and she had yet to meet anyone who could resist it. It was how she got so good at her job, she could terrorize anyone to give her the answers she needed. "Enter."

And indeed Emma Swan peeked her head in, and seeing the smirk, the blonde visibly bristled. Oh she was going to make that woman rue the day she decided to make an enemy out of Regina Mills, and if the blonde wasn't walking out with her tail between her legs in 3 minutes, Regina was going to be disappointed in herself for losing her touch. "Come to see if I have anything else that needs to be knocked over?"

"Actually no, I-"

Regina wasn't even going to let Emma voice her thoughts. She had better things to do than having to deal with this. "I assure you _dear_, I could care less about whatever excuse you think will get me to pity you and accept the fact that in the past 5 years, you've managed to knock me down and make an ass out of myself not once, but twice, without the least consideration in helping me afterwards. Now I suggest that you make yourself scarce before I get really ambitious and decide to make the trip up to Albert Spencer's office and truly make sure that not only you are demoted, but also driven out of the Boston PD and that no Force in all of Massachusetts will even want to _think_ about hiring you. Am I clear?"

She was surprised at seeing the hard-set glare she received in return, though she kept her face composed and even. "Crystal clear, _your Majesty_. You know, I can see why everyone in this department is intimidated by you. It's not because of admiration for you. It's because they're disgusted that you can't be bothered to think of us as humans, and that one or hell, two mistakes all of a sudden makes us the lowest of the low scum on your list. You can't even fathom the fact that maybe, _just maybe_, I had a good reason for running out. You truly are heartless."

Before Regina could retaliate, Emma walked off, slamming the door shut behind her with such a force that the walls shook, and a pen-holder on top of her desk rattled and fell.

* * *

Regina Mills was not feeling guilty.

That was a preposterous notion, and if that part of her mind had been a real person, she would be doing her darn best to squander them like a bug. Unfortunately, being that said thought was happening in her mind, she was forced to come up with another reason - very similar to guilt, but certainly not it - as to why she was feeling like this.

By the time the afternoon rolled around, Regina had settled with curiosity.

Yes, she was just curious to find out what was the _excellent_ reason as to why Emma Swan believed that crashing into her yesterday was a completely excusable event. Certainly wanting to be on time for her first day on the job was not it, so what could this one be?

And she had concocted a perfect plan to find out. James had given her some files for potential new cases she could take on, and unfortunately, the decision had to be unanimous, meaning that the Rookie had to agree. So she was going to use this to get the reason out, and get that nagging and traitorous thought out of her head.

Making her way to her partner's desk, she found it empty. Part of her was actually relieved, however bizarre it actually felt. So she just went back to her desk and busied herself with other papers and outstanding forms she had been saddled with.

A few hours later and she finally heard her partner's annoying voice filtering through her door, which had been left slightly ajar. Deciding that there was no time like the present, Regina stood up and walked towards the Rookie's desk, arms laden with folders, determined to abate her curiosity.

"Hi!"

The one thing Regina Mills would've never expected to be met with when she finally came to stand in front of Emma Swan's cubicle, was a small child. But despite her seeming heartlessness, as Emma had so eloquently put it, she was able to soften up for children. "Hello, and who are you?"

"I'm Henry!" The young boy waved his left arm, that Regina noted was in a cast.

"Well it's very nice to meet you Henry; what happened to your arm?"

"I made a boo-boo yesterday. My auntie and mama weren't happy about it."

Regina could see the guilt in the boy's eyes, so she decided to not press for more information regarding the boy's accident. "Perhaps you should go find your parents now? I'm sure they must be worried about you."

Little Henry shook his head. "Mama told me to wait _here_."

She was puzzled, and it showed as she began to ask, "Here? Why would she..."

"Maybe it's because she doesn't want her kid running around and getting into trouble." Regina whipped around at hearing the voice and was faced with a very smug-looking Emma Swan leaning against the entrance. "I know, it's a shocking fact, I'll let you work out the sheer brilliance for a minute."

"You...you have a son?"

It wasn't Emma, but rather Henry who answered with a grin. "Yep!"

She mentally slapped herself for not seeing the resemblance. Then it clicked. Henry mentioned an accident yesterday. This must have been where Emma had run off to. "Ms. Swan, a minute?"

Without waiting, she walked off a bit of a distance so she was out of the general earshot, as well as Henry's. Emma made her way to where Regina stood after a few seconds, and then stood in front of the brunette, hands in her pockets. "If you're going to reprimand me for having a kid in the office, I literally have no one else to leave him with, and Ruby's busy with a case so I can't leave her with him either and-"

"No. I wanted to...apologize for earlier. I'm assuming yesterday's fiasco was because you were running to deal with your son's accident?"

Emma was flabbergasted, but quickly recuperated. "Yeah, my sister isn't the best at not panicking, and when she called me she was practically having a mental breakdown, so I just bolted out of here. For the record, I am sorry for running into you...yet again."

Regina saw Emma flash a smile, one that Regina returned, albeit hers was certainly much smaller, and imperceptible if you weren't standing right in front of her. "Just make sure you don't do it again. But anyway, I came here so you can help pick our new case. It needs to be a joint decision."

"Yeah sure, do you want to choose together, or should I take a look and then meet up to decide?"

Regina had had her fill of playing social, so she just shoved the folders into Emma's arms and responded, "The latter. Do try and have your decision before the end of the day? I'd like to get started on research tonight."

Emma noted the quick change in demeanour, but decided that right now, she shouldn't ask. "Yeah, sure thing."

Emma then spent the next couple of hours poring over the 6 cases, giving a more cliff-notes and G version of the cases to her very curious son. Despite the fact that Emma knew that Henry would pick cases depending on what interest a 4-year old boy, she was having a ball hearing him try to figure out what case she should pick.

Before they could reach a final verdict, her boss showed up. "Swan, my office in 5...leave the kid."

* * *

**And that was this chapter! It was a little bit filler-ish, to show Regina meeting Henry, and establishing her as not _that_ heartless, though we all know Regina's a big softie.**

**But worry not, we'll be back with more detective things, the case with Gold, Hood and Neal will be making its rounds again by the next chapter!**

**I hope everyone enjoyed it, and let me know what you think!**

**Next up to be updated will be Thief in the Night, and then Such a Heavenly View!**


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